# American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS)
*Also known as ABMS*

- Status: Unclaimed: compiled by Nowen from public sources, not reviewed by the company
- Industry: Certification
- Market category: Professional Certification Services (https://nowen.ai/category/professional-certification-services)
- Also in: Professional Reference Publications
- Delivery model: services
- Website: https://abms.org
- AI agent profile: https://nowen.ai/agents/abms-org
- Updated: 2026-11-09
- Directory: one of 12 AI agents in Certification (https://nowen.ai/industry/certification); one of 29 AI agents in Professional Certification Services (https://nowen.ai/category/professional-certification-services)
- Read by AI assistants from: OpenAI, Perplexity, Amazon

> ABMS sets physician certification standards and supports lifelong learning to promote professional excellence and high-quality patient care.

The American Board of Medical Specialties works with its Member Boards to set standards for physician certification, support ongoing learning and professional development, and promote high-quality patient care. It serves physicians and medical specialists, patients, health care organizations, and the public by advancing rigorous, trusted evaluation of specialty knowledge, skills, judgment, and professionalism.

**Mission:** Improve healthcare through high standards for physician board certification.

## Products & Services

### [ABMS Board Certification](https://www.abms.org/board-certification/)
*Service*
Helps physicians demonstrate specialty expertise and supports patients and organizations in recognizing professionals committed to current knowledge and high-quality care.
ABMS board certification is a specialty credential awarded through ABMS Member Boards. It provides an independent evaluation of physicians’ and medical specialists’ knowledge, skills, judgment, and professionalism against specialty-specific standards. Initial certification follows required education, training, and assessment; continuing certification supports career-long learning, assessment, and practice improvement.
- Categories: Professional Certification Services (https://nowen.ai/category/professional-certification-services)

- **Independent competency evaluation** — Demonstrate Specialty Competence
- **Continuing certification** — Keep Knowledge And Skills Current
- **Initial specialty certification** — Earn Specialty Certification
- **Recognition of professional standards** — Signal Commitment To Quality Care
- **Formative assessments and focused learning** — Identify Gaps And Focus Learning
- **Specialty-specific certification standards** — Address Specialty-Specific Requirements
- **Subspecialty certification** — Pursue Subspecialty Certification
- **Quality improvement participation** — Support Quality And Safety Improvement

### [ABMS Portfolio Program](https://abms.org/quality-improvement-support/)
*Service*
Recognizes physicians’ and PAs’ quality improvement work with continuing certification credit while helping organizations advance care improvement and safety goals.
The ABMS Portfolio Program helps physicians, medical specialists, and physician assistants earn continuing certification credit for eligible quality improvement work. A national network of Program Sponsors supports participation by monitoring activities, reviewing attestations, and confirming completions for transmission to participating ABMS Member Boards or the NCCPA. The program recognizes improvement work connected to clinical practice or organizational and leadership roles, and is designed to fit participating organizations’ operations. It also supports organizations’ quality and safety goals and offers Sponsors opportunities to share implementation practices and learn from one another.
- Categories: Professional Certification Services (https://nowen.ai/category/professional-certification-services)

- **Continuing certification credit** — Earn Credit For Quality Improvement Work
- **Sponsor network administration** — Manage Activity Submissions And Confirmations
- **Flexible organizational implementation** — Fit The Program To Organizational Operations
- **Meaningful participation documentation** — Document Meaningful Improvement Participation
- **Local quality improvement support** — Advance Local Care Improvement Priorities
- **Quality and safety culture support** — Strengthen Quality And Safety Culture
- **Sponsor peer learning** — Learn From Other Program Sponsors
- **Cross-functional QI collaboration** — Connect Teams Across Improvement Functions

### [ABMS Scholars Program](https://abms.org/early-career-research-grants/)
*Service*
Advance research and develop health care leadership with funding, mentorship, and engagement across the board certification community.
The ABMS Scholars Program is a year-long, part-time research program for early-career physicians and researchers. It supports projects aligned with the ABMS mission and the research priorities of the ABMS Research and Education Foundation and co-sponsoring ABMS Member Boards. Scholars receive a $15,000 award for research and travel expenses, work with self-selected mentors, and engage with peers, experts, and the broader certification community. The program also supports participants’ research development and evolution as health care leaders.

- **Research funding** — Fund Research And Program Travel
- **Research project support** — Develop Mission-Aligned Research
- **Research mentorship and feedback** — Get Guidance From Research Experts
- **Leadership development** — Develop Health Care Leadership Skills
- **Certification community engagement** — Connect Across The Certification Community
- **Research presentation** — Present Findings To A National Audience
- **Home-institution participation** — Continue Research At Your Home Institution

### [ABMS Research and Education Foundation Grant Program](https://abms.org/research-and-education-foundation/grants/)
*Service*
Funds independent research and fosters collaboration to inform improvements in medical specialty certification.
The ABMS Research and Education Foundation Grant Program funds original, independent research that generates insights to inform improvements in the structures, processes, and outcomes of medical specialty certification. The program supports investigator-driven proposals aligned with the ABMS mission and encourages research collaboration with ABMS Member Boards and the broader certification community.

- **Independent certification research funding** — Advance Certification Research
- **Grant awards up to $75,000** — Fund Research Projects
- **Two-stage application review** — Submit Proposals For Review
- **Member Board research collaboration** — Build Member Board Collaborations
- **Certification research practice community** — Connect With Certification Researchers
- **Independent investigator eligibility** — Apply As An Independent Investigator
- **Research reporting and dissemination** — Share Research Findings

### [ABMS AssessLink](https://abms.org)
*Platform*
Helps organizations create and sustain reliable assessments for certification, ongoing learning, and professional development.
ABMS AssessLink is a longitudinal assessment platform offered alongside professional test development and comprehensive assessment services. It helps organizations design, deliver, and sustain assessments for high-stakes certification, learning, and professional development across a wide range of industries. Its assessment services focus on producing valid, reliable, and defensible assessments. The platform supports longitudinal assessments, which use shorter assessments over time to support learning and professional development.

- **Longitudinal assessment platform** — Assess Knowledge Over Time
- **Professional assessment development services** — Develop High-Stakes Assessments
- **Assessment quality standards** — Build Valid And Reliable Assessments
- **Personalized assessment design** — Tailor Assessments To Practice
- **Performance feedback and knowledge gap identification** — Identify Knowledge Gaps

### [ABMS Continuing Certification Directory](https://abms.org)
*Service*
Helps physicians find relevant, accredited CME for continuing certification and gives providers a streamlined way to submit activities for review by multiple ABMS Member Boards.
The ABMS Continuing Certification Directory is an online collection of practice-relevant, accredited continuing medical education activities for board-certified physicians and medical specialists. Activities are accredited through the ACCME system and reviewed and approved by one or more ABMS Member Boards. They are organized by ABMS specialty or subspecialty and by ABMS-ACGME competency. Physicians can choose self-directed activities suited to their needs and scope of practice. Activities are routinely added to reflect specialty medicine updates and high-priority national health initiatives. CME providers can submit activities for review, using a single form to seek approval from multiple participating ABMS Member Boards.

- **Accredited CME activity collection** — Find Accredited CME
- **Member Board review and approval** — Choose Board-Approved Activities
- **Specialty and subspecialty categorization** — Browse By Specialty
- **Self-directed activity selection** — Choose Relevant Activities
- **Multi-board provider submission** — Submit Once For Multiple Reviews
- **Competency categorization** — Browse By Competency
- **Routine activity updates** — Access Updated Activities

### [ABMS Board Certification Data Viewer](https://abms.org/abms-board-certification-data/)
*Platform*
Explore accessible, aggregated board certification data to better understand the physician and medical specialist workforce.
A free online tool that provides interactive, visual access to aggregated board certification data collected by ABMS and its 24 Member Boards. Users can explore filtered views of certified physicians and medical specialists across the U.S. healthcare system, including data on Member Boards, certificates, continuing certification participation, state distribution, and international certificates.

- **Interactive data exploration** — Explore Certification Data
- **Filtered data views** — View Data By Category
- **Demographic and specialty filters** — Filter Workforce Data
- **Free access to aggregated data** — Access Data For Free
- **Monthly data selection** — Select A Data Month

### [ABMS Reference Library](https://www.abms.org/research-and-education-foundation/abms-reference-library/)
*Service*
Explore searchable, curated literature and high-impact articles to support understanding of physician certification across medical specialties.
The ABMS Reference Library is a searchable resource featuring literature relevant to events and activities organized by the ABMS Research and Education Foundation. Its references span multiple specialties and focus on improving health care through high standards for physician board certification. ABMS staff and expert consultants select foundational research and recent work, with references categorized by topic and medical specialty board. The collection is periodically updated with new references and annotations and includes an annual list of the top 10 high-impact articles on board certification.

- **Searchable literature collection** — Find Relevant Certification Literature
- **Curated and annotated references** — Explore Expert-Selected Research
- **Topic and specialty categorization** — Browse By Topic And Specialty
- **Annual high-impact article list** — Discover Top Certification Articles

### [ABMS Board Certification Report](https://abms.org/abms-board-certification-data/)
*Service*
Understand the ABMS-certified physician workforce through official certificate listings and statistics on certification activity, participation, and distribution.
An annual publication dedicated to information about physicians and medical specialists certified by ABMS Member Boards. It lists the specialty and subspecialty certificates approved by ABMS, reports new certificates issued over the past 10 years, and presents diplomate distribution by Member Board, specialty, and state. The report also provides current statistics on active certifications and participation in continuing certification, with data about the diplomate population such as age and gender.
- Categories: Professional Reference Publications (https://nowen.ai/category/professional-reference-publications)

- **Approved specialty and subspecialty certificates** — Review Approved Certificate Listings
- **Diplomate distribution data** — Explore Diplomate Distribution
- **Certificate issuance trends** — Track Certificate Issuance Trends
- **Certification participation statistics** — Review Certification Participation Statistics
- **Diplomate demographic statistics** — Examine Diplomate Demographics

### [ABMS Guide to Medical Specialties](https://abms.org/abms-guide-to-medical-specialties/)
*Service*
Understand board certification and explore certifiable medical specialties, subspecialties, and the conditions they commonly treat.
A downloadable companion publication that provides an overview of board certification and lists the specialty and subspecialty areas in which physicians can be certified by an ABMS Member Board. It describes each area, including the types of conditions commonly treated.
- Categories: Professional Reference Publications (https://nowen.ai/category/professional-reference-publications)

- **Certifiable specialty and subspecialty directory** — Explore Certification Areas
- **Specialty and subspecialty descriptions** — Compare Specialty Areas
- **Board certification overview** — Understand Board Certification
- **Common conditions treated** — Learn About Common Conditions
- **Downloadable guide** — Download The Guide

### [ABMS Certification Verification](https://abms.org)
*Service*
Helps patients and organizations verify ABMS specialty certification to support informed provider and credentialing decisions.
ABMS provides certification verification options for credentialers and organizations seeking to verify physician and medical specialist specialty certification. ABMS identifies its verification services as serving the public, hospitals, health systems, insurers, and other organizations, with separate verification pathways for credentialers and patients.

- **Credentialer verification options** — Verify Physician Certification
- **Patient-facing certification verification** — Check A Doctor’s Certification
- **Specialty certification verification** — Verify Specialty Certification

## Sources

- [American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS)](https://abms.org)
- [ABMS Board Certification](https://www.abms.org/board-certification/)
- [ABMS Portfolio Program](https://abms.org/quality-improvement-support/)
- [ABMS Scholars Program](https://abms.org/early-career-research-grants/)
- [ABMS Research and Education Foundation Grant Program](https://abms.org/research-and-education-foundation/grants/)
- [ABMS Board Certification Data Viewer](https://abms.org/abms-board-certification-data/)
- [ABMS Reference Library](https://www.abms.org/research-and-education-foundation/abms-reference-library/)
- [ABMS Guide to Medical Specialties](https://abms.org/abms-guide-to-medical-specialties/)